Lesson Eighteen: Writer’s Block
“You’re in the middle of writing something and your mind goes blank… ok, you’re being warned, aren’t you?” Discover Ray Bradbury’s simple tr...
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The Invisible College
Lessons in creative writing from a ghostly array of great novelists, poets and playwrights such as Ted Hughes, W.B. Yeats and Allen Ginsberg. Presented by Cathy FitzGerald.
Episodes
18 episodesLesson Seventeen: What I Learned from James Baldwin
Contemporary novelist Caryl Phillips close reads a dramatic passage from ‘Another Country’ by James Baldwin to see what we can learn from th...
Lesson Sixteen: Dealing with Critics
If you’re going to put your work out in the world, then sooner or later, someone’s going to take a pop at it. This lesson features tips on h...
Lesson Fifteen: Write and Repeat
“Easy reading is damned hard writing,” says Maya Angelou. Hear the many pains she takes to ‘sharpen her language’ in this lesson about revis...
Lesson Fourteen: In Search of a Character with Graham Greene
Hear how Graham Greene gradually evolves a character – and a novel - on a research trip to a leper colony in the Congo.
Lesson Thirteen: Place
Sometimes the world gives writers a location so atmospheric it’s just waiting for a back story. But how do we do it justice? Poet Ted Hughes...
Lesson Twelve: A Workshop with Allen Ginsberg
How often do you get the chance to attend a lecture by one of the Beats? An extraordinary opportunity to spend time with poet Allen Ginsberg...
Lesson Eleven: Listen Up!
If you want to write good dialogue, you need good ears. Listen to all the little idiosyncrasies of an individual voice: the cadences, elisio...
Lesson Ten: Find your Story
Waiting for the muse to strike? Give it up and get writing. Here are five creation stories from the archives to inspire you, from novelists...
Lesson Nine: Keep Human
In praise of day-dreaming, holidays and playing hookey: this lesson exalts the importance of time off. Go to the pub with W.B. Yeats, flit t...
Lesson Eight: The Writer’s Mind
The subconscious mind can be the writer’s greatest helper – or nastiest foe. This lesson considers ways to access its mysterious depths, wit...
Lesson Seven: Routines and Rituals
Yes, we need talent – but we also need discipline. In other words: keep your ass in the chair. With tips from Daphne du Maurier, Graham Gree...
Lesson Six: A Note on Style
Show don’t tell. Well, no, actually – show AND tell. This lesson explores different ways of presenting a scene, with tips from the Yiddish w...
Lesson Five: Planning a Route
To plot or not to plot – that’s the question. Some writers plan in advance; others set out without a map and see where they wind up. Featuri...
Lesson Four: Creating Characters
How nosy are you about your protagonist? Do you know what she eats for breakfast? Likes to dance to? How she parts her hair? A lesson about...
Lesson Three: Getting Better Acquainted with Words
How do we recognise a dancing, hell-raising word from one that just wants a quiet life flat on the page? Poet Ted Hughes helps us recognise...
Lesson Two: Sell your Heart
How do we find a voice? Figure out what’s ours – and only ours – to say? Tips from Neil Gaiman and Invisible College favourite, Ray Bradbury...
Lesson One: The Importance of Reading
If you want to write – read. Marinate your mind in the sentence and the word. With Susan Sontag on the book-drunken life; Ralph Ellison on t...